Literature Essay Example: The Power of Death and Nature in Poems

A poet is not a mere entertainer. A poet is a person who uses their talent and imagination to break down the spiritual and other truths about nature regarding religious, social and political aspects of life in a creative manner. Due to their candid vocalization of these truths, many poets have been misunderstood and castigated by tyrannical governments, the middle class and traditional religious groups (Avia 28). Nevertheless, the poets emerge triumphant because their artistic work is immortal. They live to inspire others. One of the issues that many poets tackle is the helplessness of man in the face of nature and death. The power of death and nature is so intense that no human being can subdue it. Death is part of the course of nature. The beauty of nature, on the other hand, is so endearing that it romanticizes and connects human beings to their destiny. This paper will analyze three poems: Emily Dickinsons Because I could not stop for Death, Elizabeth Bishops First Death in Nova Scotia, and William Wordsworths It is a Beauteous Evening. The three poems will be analyzed in the context of the theme of the power of death and nature, and illustrate mans helplessness in the face of the same. Nature has both positives and negatives as it can overwhelm, create and destroy in equal measure.

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Sometimes, nature is so powerful that it sets the stage for wild human imagination. It overwhelms the human being so much that they can only be spectators. One cannot help but either admire the marvels of nature or accept whatever it brings. In his poem, It is a Beauteous Evening, William Wordsworth seems to revere the beauty of nature and his close connection to its power. The persona walks with a child along a beach. As they walk along, this persona seems so fascinated by not only the beauty of the evening scene but also the innocence of the child who does not view nature the same way he does. The persona is so overwhelmed by the power of nature that he parallels it with a strong religious power which inspires him to envision his child, who seems untouched by solemn thought, as already in heaven even before her death. Death, which is part of this nature, is further explored by Emily Dickinson in her poem, Because I could not stop for Death. In this poem, the persona is so overwhelmed by the gentleness and civility of death that he follows it without a second thought. The persona says:

We slowly drove, he knew no haste, And I had put awayMy labor, and my leisure too,For his civility

The power of nature seems to have seduced the persona and made him believe that death was too kind to be ignored. In the poem, First Death in Nova Scotia, Elizabeth Bishop uses the voice of a child to explore the aspect of the powerful feature of nature. The speaker, a child, experiences death for the first time. The mother is in charge of the memorial ceremony for Arthur, the speakers cousin. The speaker says that in the cold, cold parlor /my mother laid out Arthur. The speaker is expected to say goodbye to Arthur but is so overwhelmed by the image of Arthur who in his death, was very small. /He was all white, like a doll/that hadn't been painted yet. The persona is overwhelmed since he cannot understand why Arthur dies so young. He imagines that something beyond their control had happened. That nature had taken its course. He says:

Jack Frost had started to paint him the way he always painted the Maple Leaf (Forever). He had just begun on his hair, a few red strokes, and then Jack Frost had dropped the brush and left him white, forever.

This kind of imagination implies that nature is so overwhelming that it sets the stage for wild imagination yet there is nothing one can do to control it. Jack Frost was overpowered by nature hence could not paint young Arthur anymore: an inference that Arthur dies at a very tender age. This gives the impression that nature is so overwhelming that when it strikes, People can only be spectators. In the same way William Wordsworth, in his poem, It is a Beauteous Evening, portrays a child as innocent, Elizabeth Bishop exposes the innocence of a child in this poem in relation to the overwhelming feature of nature. The reader is, in the process, exposed to the powerful imagination of the human mind.

Also, nature has the ability to create and destroy. It creates beautiful things but destroys them at its whim. Due to the uncertainty associated with nature, William Wordsworth uses the adjective breathless in his sonnet, It is a Beauteous Evening, yet the evening is said to be calm and free. The use of this adjective provides evidence that despite the adorable feature of nature, there is a lot of tension. It is not known when this nature may strike in its wrath. Emily Dickinson confirms the intricate of natures seduction in her poem, Because I could not stop for Death. In this poem, the speaker is tricked by death who seems too kind to be ignored. The speaker ends up following death, and by the end of it all, finds themselves in the grave. The speaker says:

We paused before a House that seemed

A Swelling of the Ground

The Roof was scarcely visible

The Cornice in the Ground

These words imply that the speaker did not realize the destructive nature of death until he found himself seduced by it all the way to the grave. He admits that Since then tis Centuries and yet/Feels shorter than the Day. For a long time, this speaker has found themselves trapped in this grave from which he cannot get himself out. The speakers predicament can be likened to the ideology in Shelleys poem, Hymn to Intellectual Beauty in which the speaker recognizes the fact that nature can destroy indiscriminately due to a certain force that he describes as spirit of beauty(Shelley 1816). Elizabeth Bishop goes ahead to connect nature to the cruel aspect of death. Through the voice of a child, Elizabeth Bishop portrays the frustrations and disappointment of losing a child. The dead child was so young that the speaker admits: Arthur was very small. /He was all white, like a doll /that hadn't been painted yet. Nature had created the boy, yet destroys him by having him die at such a young age. The disappointment is well captured in the last stanza in which the speaker says about The gracious royal couple:

They invited Arthur to be the smallest page at court. But how could Arthur go, clutching his tiny lily, with his eyes shut up so tight and the roads deep in snow?

The disappointment portrayed here is brought about by death. Arthur is dead and therefore, cannot honor the invitation from the royal family. Such is the power of nature. It creates then destroys indiscriminately.

In conclusion, it is clear that nature has no mercy. It is so powerful that human beings have no control over it. Nature can overwhelm, create and destroy. On the one hand, the natural beauty of nature is adorable and pleasantly overwhelming; however, on the other, it is utterly destructive and powerful. It is, therefore, important for human beings to be aware of both sides of nature so that they are ready to bear with whatever it brings along.

Works Cited

Shelley, Percy Bysshe. Shelley's Poetry and Prose. Digireads. com Publishing, 2015.

Avia, Tusiata. "The 'Power' of 'Poetry'." English in Aotearoa 72 (2010): 28.